It’s Tiger Time for Mara Titarsolej

It’s Tiger Time for Mara Titarsolej 

By Ashlee Buhler

If there’s one thing Mara Titarsolej (pronounced tee-tar-SO-lee) knows a lot about, it’s making history. 

After closing out the Elite chapter of her career (where she had great success, including the 2015 World Championships where she helped the Netherlands punch an Olympic team ticket for the first time in 40 years), Titarsolej shifted her focus to college, becoming a member of Long Island University’s inaugural team in 2021. (Prior to LIU, a new women’s college gymnastics program had not been added in a decade!) From freshman year to junior year she was able to seize every moment with the Sharks, becoming the first (and only) gymnast in the program’s history to score a perfect 10, the first to receive All-America honors and the first to qualify to NCAA regionals as an individual. Titarsolej is one of only two Dutch gymnasts to ever move to the United States to do college gymnastics (Lichelle Wong competed for UCLA from 2010-2013) and at the age of 24, she’s one of the oldest gymnasts on the scene. 

Titarsolej has also made a name for herself on the national stage, particularly on the uneven bars where she has finished in the top 10 the last two seasons. All the while she has caught the attention of gymnastics fans around the world thanks to her unique skills (look for the Bhardwaj on bars this season, as well as her illusion to split jump on beam) and picture perfect technique. 

For her senior season, Titarsolej has taken her talents to Columbia, Missouri where she’ll certainly make an immediate impact for the Tigers as they set their sights on another team NCAA Championship berth in April. As Titarsolej said herself – it’s now or never – and she’s more ready than ever for this next chapter. 

I want to start by going back to how your recruiting process started. We don’t see a lot of Dutch gymnasts go on to do NCAA gymnastics, was this something you always wanted to do? 

Not at all! It was kind of random. With the whole gymnastics crisis in Europe, my gym basically decided to stop providing a space for seniors, so I kind of got kicked out of my gym which was sad because I knew I wasn’t done with gymnastics. So I looked into other options and that’s when I came across college. I was already like 20-years-old at that time and had graduated high school the year before, so I wasn’t sure if I was able to do it, but that’s when I started reaching out to schools to see what was possible. This was somewhere between February and May of 2020, so I was really late with everything. 

You ended up joining LIU’s inaugural team for the 2020-2021 season. Was joining a brand new team and being a part of history something that was a big draw for you? 

I didn’t have a lot of options because I was so late in the game, so it was between LIU and Alaska. I was kind of intrigued by how it was a new program and Randy (Lane) was really enthusiastic about everything. I felt good talking to him and I was excited to help build a program, especially after basically being kicked out of my old program at home. I was just excited to help build something new.  

You couldn’t compete right away during your freshman season because you weren’t cleared by the NCAA. Can you explain what happened? 

To be honest with you, I didn’t really understand. It had something to do with me competing [as an international athlete] and my gap year, which I didn’t really do because I competed right before I graduated high school. I think it had something to do with that. They said I had to sit out for three meets and then I was good to go. That’s what I understood from it, but I was just told that and was like, ‘Ok. I’ll just do whatever you tell me to do.’ 

Well, the following year was incredible for you! Most notably you became the first gymnast in LIU history to get a perfect 10 – walk me through that moment, what you remember from it and what it means to you? 

It was crazy because that whole preseason and during the season we were kind of building up to it. We kept saying, ‘Ok this is going to be a 10. This is going to be the year!’ We were really manifesting it as a team and my teammates were convincing me that I was good enough and that I was going to get it. When I did the routine it didn’t feel perfect at all. I felt like I had done better routines but the whole atmosphere felt electric. It was just such a great moment and seeing my whole team and the coaches so excited, it was special for sure. 

I’ve heard a lot of gymnasts say they didn’t feel one of their 10.0 routines was perfect…

Maybe it’s a reward for the other routines that maybe deserved more – that’s how I justify it to myself [laughs]. 

The news came out in May that you were transferring to Mizzou. When did you know you wanted to transfer?

I kind of had been feeling like I wanted something more during the whole season. I kind of felt like it was time for me to move on or move in a different direction. I felt a little stuck academically, as well as gymnastics. Although I made a lot of progress on beam! I was really happy with Liv (Courtney), the new assistant coach last year, so that was awesome. But after the season I just felt like I had more to give and wanted to see what it was like elsewhere, at a bigger school with more resources. I also wanted to have a good shot at making Regionals and possibly Nationals as a team and I knew it was going to be hard with LIU. That’s when I was like, ‘Ok I’m going to take a chance and see what else is out there. I had a great three years at LIU, but it’s now or never.’ 

You mentioned not having a lot of interest in your initial recruiting process since you were so late to the game, but having established yourself at LIU, did you get more interest from schools when entering the transfer portal? 

Yes! It was actually a really great confidence boost being acknowledged by bigger programs and knowing they could see me as an asset to their team. I considered other schools … another SEC school, a Big 10 school, but I just felt Mizzou was the right place for me. I really loved the coaches – and I loved the coaches at the other programs too – but something just felt right for me here. It was the first place I visited too. I went on four other visits. 

Now being at a SEC school, are there any big differences you noticed right away?

Just the gravity of everything. Everything is just so much bigger and so professional. Just stepping on campus and seeing the athletic facilities and all the resources they have, it’s a huge difference! Plus having a gym on campus is so much easier and gives us a little extra peace and ease to our days. 

What has it been like living in the United States? You’ve been here for almost four years now. What would you say was the biggest adjustment for you?

Not being able to walk or bike or take a train anywhere. Relying on cars, that’s the major difference. And then the food. 

Do you like the food? 

I actually do! I’ve gotten used to it. I like any breakfast food, like pancakes! We don’t do that for breakfast. At home we usually have a slice of bread with cheese or a yogurt with fruit. I’m still not used to potatoes for breakfast, I don’t agree with that! [laughs]

Looking ahead to this upcoming season, it will be here before we know it! How has the team looked in preseason?  

I’m so excited! I think we’ve been looking great. Everyone looks so confident and ready to kill the season, so I’m excited to get started. 

Watch Mara’s beam from the Black & Gold Intrasquad below!

Photo courtesy of Mizzou Athletics

Subscribe to Inside Gymnastics for 3 Years and receive a free gift!